Ries held her up as he thrust a few more times, groaning her name as he too found his release in her body. They stayed that way for a long time.
As her wits came back to her, she felt him gently clean her up with a warm washcloth, ignoring her feeble protest and urging her to rest for a bit. Stephanie was still on a pleasure high when Ries quietly left the bedroom and she lay there for a long time.
Her mind slowly coming back to reality as doubts and questions surfaced.
Ries has never been like that before, but he seemed to expect my participation with his dominant behavior. I wonder if he was like that with all of the other women who came before me? Did they like it and that’s why he thought it was okay to treat me like that without even asking?
She had to admit she had enjoyed it – but it also put her in mind other things. Where had he developed those skills? Did he have a ‘protocol’ he simply used on every woman he came across? What else might he do without asking her?
She rolled over to her side and hugged the pillow close, inhaling his scent and frowning when her body clenched in renewed need.
“Down girl, we’ve had enough for one night.”
No matter the answers to her questions, she had to admit that she’d liked it. A lot.
*****
Ries left the bedroom, grabbing his robe off the chair on his way out and headed for the bedroom at the end of the hall.
For the last few days, he’d been putting distance between himself and Stephanie. Not because he wanted to but because he knew if he didn’t, he wouldn’t be able to keep her safe and protected. He needed to be able to say ‘no’ to her – even if she had saved his life.
If she disobeyed his orders again, Ries knew, it could very easily end differently. He would never forget the terror that seized him as he felt bullets whizz past, so close to Stephanie’s body beside his.
He had been doing so well. He had not caved into her demands or let himself be swayed by her anger at his refusal. He had felt almost capable of handling her in the way that was most important: keeping her safe.
Yet all of that had just been blown out of the water. By her.
Why?
That was the question that he couldn’t ignore or answer. He’d known Stephanie was hurt and angered by the way he’d been treating her, and yet, she’d come to him with the intent of seducing him.
Old insecurities sounded in his brain, reminding him that women who acted like Stephanie had tonight only did so because they were afraid of losing his good favor. The thought that she might have had an ulterior motive for coming to his room tonight diminished the joy they’d found in one another’s arms. It put a bad taste in Ries’ mouth and brought back doubts he’d hoped were gone.
Chapter 16
A few days later…
Since the night she’d seduced Ries, he had gone back to barely talking to her, refusing to let her leave the apartment, and leaving directly after breakfast everyday to go do only-he-knew-what.
He came home each evening, where they ate a silent dinner together, and then he retreated to his makeshift office and she watched television until she fell asleep.
Stephanie was beginning to go stir crazy but Ries wasn’t around to share that with, and on this day, she found herself wandering from room to room, searching for some way to make the boredom and the distance bearable.
She’d just entered the room he was using as his office when his computer screen came on and his brother Damon’s face filled the screen, the soft ring of a video call sounding over the computer’s speakers.
She glanced around, unsure if she should answer the video call or just pretend she’d never seen it. The prospect of having some role, any role in the investigation was tantalizing. Even if it was just passing messages from brother to brother.
Yet she remembered what Damon had said about her the last time she’d seen him.
One of Ries’ women.
The last thing she needed was for anyone to remind her of her fears about the man she still had strong feelings for, despite everything.
When the call disconnected, she breathed a sigh of relief.
But then a second video call started immediately. Damon again.
It must be urgent.
What if Ries was in danger, and he didn’t know it?
Stephanie found herself sitting down in the desk chair and moving the mouse to the answer icon. She clicked it and the held her breath as the call connected and his brother’s voice filled the space.
“What are you doing answering Ries’ computer?” Damon’s face was stern, even angry.
Stephanie felt her breath catch at the tone of his voice and then forced a smile to her lips. “Hello, Damon.”
Damon arched a brow and then sighed, “I need to speak with Ries.”
“Uhm…he’s not here.”
“Ries is not there and yet he left his computer unlocked with you? My brother continues to amaze me.”
“I can tell him you called,” she offered, biting her tongue to avoid saying something she’d regret.
“No, that won’t be necessary. Although, there is something you could do for me. For all of us, including Ries.”
Stephanie slowly nodded. The thought of being useful was enticing but she didn’t trust Damon’s tone of voice. “Okay. Shoot.”
“You already know that my brother is a playboy of the worst sort and has had a succession of girlfriends. He’s incapable of committing himself to only one relationship and usually is already started on the next one before he ever completely breaks it off with his current paramour.
“And then he has the gall to act heartbroken, which only serves to draw more women to his side to soothe his broken heart. He doesn’t seem to know how to do anything but manipulate people’s emotions.”
Stephanie digested his words. This was a strange thing for Damon to talk to her about – he hadn’t exactly given off the vibe that he was interested in her feelings.
“Why are you telling me this?” She demanded.
Damon sighed again, running his fingers through his perfectly coiffed hair. For a moment, the expression on his face was almost human. “Look,” he said, “you seem like a nice kid, and I don’t believe you want to hurt my brother. But you deserve someone a little more mature than him. Being unreliable and reckless is kind of his thing. I would hate to see you get hurt because he’s a careless jerk.”
Stephanie was shocked. She wasn’t sure if it was because Damon was acting human or because he was saying such awful things about Ries. “How can you say those things about your own brother? You clearly don’t know Ries like I do. He’s a good man.” But even as Stephanie spoke, doubts crept into her mind. She remembered how cold he had been. How tyrannical. How distant. Perhaps he was not so unlike his brother Damon after all.
“Because they’re true,” Damon said simply. “If you want to protect yourself from being mistreated, you need to leave. That would be the best thing for you, and also for Ries. Things are getting dangerous, and the longer you two continue to ignore the obvious…”
“Which is?” Stephanie interrupted him.
“That there is no future between the two of you. My brother is incapable of making long-term plans. The sooner you both realize that, the less it will hurt when you rip the Band-Aid off and go your separate ways. You’re already emotionally invested in him as I believe he is with you. The longer you prolong the split, the more it will hurt. Best to do it soon and abruptly.”
“I’ll take that under consideration,” she murmured coolly.
“You do that.” Damon’s face told her that he didn’t believe her, yet also expected the inevitable split to come soon. “I’ll call Ries on his cell. Goodbye and have a good life, as I don’t expect we’ll meet again.”
Stephanie stared at the screen as Damon’s face faded away. She couldn’t believe his audacity.
Stephanie sat at the desk, her mind conjuring up how she might feel if Ries was ever to reject her. She would be devastat
ed.
The thought of leaving Ries, even with the distance he kept putting between them, hurt. But she knew it would only hurt more the longer she stuck around. Could any relationship founded on an assassination plot last? Or would they realize they were too different as soon as the threat had passed?
Ries would be angry with her for putting herself in danger if she left, but Damon’s words about how Ries normally started distancing himself from his current woman before dumping her were loud in her head.
Was that what he was doing, and he was only waiting until the danger was over to send her away with a clean conscience
Stephanie decided her heart couldn’t risk that kind of rejection. Not after everything they’d been through. She wandered back toward the bedroom she’d been using and began to pack her belongings, tucking her clothing into a bag she’d found tucked away at the bottom of the closet.
She emptied the dresser drawers and started on the clothing hanging in the closet. Ries had been very thorough when retrieving her belongings, bringing everything she’d owned. He’d also bought her a few new things.
“It is nothing to me,” he’d said. “And you deserve to have more options than this.”
She’d only brought along clothing, toiletries, and a few books when she’d left the States for Greece, tucking everything else that had been worth keeping in a storage unit. She’d paid for the first year and figured that after a year in Greece, she would have a better idea of what her future plans were.
She took care folding things up and placing them in the bag. Once it was full, she retrieved her suitcase from beneath the bed and began filling it with her shoes and remaining clothing.
She kept one eye on the clock sitting on the bedside table, guessing she still had a few hours before Ries would return.
This is better for both of us. He won’t need to worry about me anymore, and I won’t grow dependent on him.
The only thing she hadn’t figure out was how to get past the guards Ries had protecting her. Carlos was stationed at the ground floor, just outside the elevator. She had not tried leaving the apartment complex after her first attempt when Carlos stood guard outside the penthouse door till Ries and Chris arrived.
He’d tattled on her, and Ries had looked at her coldly and demanded that she not try anything so foolhardy again. She was being kept inside for her own protection and she needed to stop trying to get herself injured or killed.
She finished packing up her clothing and decided she might as well pack up her bathroom items, just in case an opportunity to leave tonight presented itself. Perhaps when Carlos was busy talking to Ries in the evening, it would be her chance. She squatted down to look under the bed, spying the small matching carryon bag pushed back in the far corner.
She ended up having to lie down on her belly to reach the strap, her heart hurting as each moment drew closer to the time she would need to leave.
She paused for a moment, there on the floor, lecturing herself that this had to be done. For the sake of both of their hearts.
Chapter 17
Ries stepped off the elevator, breathing a sigh of relief at being home and not having to look over his shoulder for another minute.
He was tired of having to leave the apartment each morning, only to spend hours riding around in the limo, or sitting in a safe location as deemed so by Chris, hoping that someone would find this Angelo person, or better yet, Dmitrius and put an end to this horrible situation.
He was tired of sitting in the limo and told Chris to take him back to the apartment. He wasn’t sure how he was going to keep Stephanie at an arm’s length but he missed her and wanted to spend time with her.
He kicked his shoes off at his bedroom, slightly disappointed to find that she wasn’t in the living area. He headed for the bedroom she’d been using and then stopped in the doorway, anger and fear causing him to clench his fists and growl her name. “Stephanie! Where are you?”
He heard a shuffle from the other side of the bed, a muttered oath of pain, and then she was pushing herself up with her hands on the mattress. She rubbed her head and glared at him, “What are you doing home?”
Seeing her suitcase lying on the bed, he knew she’d planned to leave. The knowledge was like a knife in the heart. He thought they’d had something real – something permanent.
The assassins had probably seen her, knew that she had saved him. If she walked out onto the street, and was shot or abducted...
The image of Stephanie bleeding on the pavement was the only thing he could see.
He stalked toward her, fury making his voice much harsher than he’d intended. “What in the name of Zeus do you think you’re doing?” he shouted.
Stephanie crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. “I think it’s pretty obvious. I’m leaving.”
“No, you’re not.” Ries mimicked her stance, crossing his arms across his muscular chest and daring her to challenge his authority. He almost hoped she would. “You don’t own me,” she shouted. “And frankly, I don’t care what you think anymore. I’m tired of being kept a prisoner here and I’m done.”
“I haven’t been keeping you a prisoner! I’ve been keeping you safe from a syndicate of assassins. Stop talking nonsense,” he growled at her.
“What would you call keeping me in this apartment for well over a week and refusing to let me step one foot out of the building?”
“I’ve been keeping you safe,” he repeated through clenched teeth. She was like a small child who wanted to run out into traffic. He admired her confidence and independence – but he didn’t admire anything that put her in danger.
His security team had found all sorts of information on Angelo, and the man wasn’t above abducting individual close to his target in order to draw them out into the open. If Angelo caught Stephanie, Ries knew he likely wouldn’t be able to rescue her alive. No matter what he did.
“I can keep myself safe,” she spat back. “I’m only in danger because I was trying to save you to begin with.”
Another knife in his heart.
“You are not leaving.” He forced his voice to be cold, not passionate. If she thought she was getting his goat, it would only encourage her. “Unpack your things before dinner.” Ries turned on his heel, not even considering that she might defy him.
When a shoe hit him in the back, he whirled around to see her standing with her hands on her hips, and the light of battle in her eyes and on her face.
He picked up the shoe and then narrowed his eyes at her, “Did you just throw this at me?”
“Yes,” she told him defiantly, reaching out and picking up the matching shoe and drawing her arm back with the intent of hitting him in the chest with the next one.
Ries stalked toward her, warning her ominously, “I would think twice before throwing that second shoe.”
“Or what? What are you going to do? Spank me again?” she challenged him, fury making her shake as she defied him.
Ries huffed out a laugh and then nodded, “Don’t tempt me. Unpack your belongings and then come downstairs. I came home early to spend some time with you as I thought you might be getting bored.”
Stephanie stared at him and then dropped the shoe, her expression falling as she glared daggers at him. Ries frowned. Were those tears in her eyes?
“Go away.” Stephanie said through clenched teeth. She retreated into the bathroom, slamming the door and locking it loudly.
Ries stood there for a long moment, his hands on his hips as he tried to calm himself down. Part of him wanted to go to her and soothe her anger.
But fear for her safety told him that would be a mistake. He might break down and give her what she wanted. And he wouldn’t risk her safety to make either of them feel better.
“Stephanie, come back out here. We’re not done talking,” he pounded his fist on the door.
“I’m done talking with you. Go away.”
“We need to talk about this.” He tried to sound commanding, not desperate.
He waited for her response but instead heard the bath water being turned on.
He sighed and then shook his head as he left the bedroom and headed for his office. He sat down at the desk and opened up his computer, frowning when he saw that he’d missed a call from his brother Damon. Ries’ heart turned cold. Had Damon spoken to Stephanie while he was away?
He scrolled over the screen, his frown increasing when he saw that Damon had called not once, but twice. The second call had been answered and had lasted well over five minutes.
Stephanie was the only one who’d been in the apartment today, meaning she’d answered his brother’s call and spoken to him. What had Damon said?
Ries felt doubts and old feelings of despair take over his emotions. It seemed that anytime one of his girlfriends spoke to Damon, it was the beginning of the end of their time with Ries. Damon was the golden boy, the one with all of the financial ties, and the one who ultimately called all of the shots.
I don’t know why I hoped that Stephanie was different than the rest. That we had a future together. Damon snaps his fingers and she does whatever he says. Did he offer to pay her?
It had to be Damon. Stephanie had been angry for days but she had never packed a bag before..
She’s just like all of the rest and she’s figured out who holds the purse strings..
I wonder if he’s going to provide protection for her if she leaves me? She’s certainly not worried about her safety, and Damon would never ask a female to put themselves in danger.
Ries closed the computer screen and then headed for the bedroom once more. The bathroom door was still closed but the bath water had stopped.
“Stephanie, did my brother call?”
“What do you care?”
“Just answer the question. Did you speak to Damon?”
“Yes. We had a lovely conversation.”
Ries clenched his fists together. “What about?”
“Can’t remember,” she hollered back.
Protected By Him (The Greek Brothers Book 4) Page 10
